Two hot Arsenal transfers that are exciting quite a few commentators today « Untold Arsenal: Arsenal News. Supporting the Lord Wenger; coach of the decade

by Tony Attwood

Since the season ended every journalist who can lift a drink and find a keyboard (preferably simultaneously and without spilling the drink) has been telling us about this that and everyone else who is going to sign for Arsenal.

Meanwhile the Anti-Arsenal Arsenal (AAA) collective with their multifarious web sites have picked up two new themes.  One is that our defence last season was crap and that no one will ever come to Arsenal because the team is rubbish.  (By this I suppose they mean that we are rubbish as in being ranked the 6th best club in Europe, and we should be first).

To offer a little balance we’ve been running a series of stories about some of the players being tipped to come to Arsenal by the press and tipped not to come to Arsenal by the AAA.  The point is that when one of them comes we can run the headline that “you read it here first”.  Which will not be true, but it passes the time before the start of the season.  There’s an index of those already covered, at the bottom of this piece.

But today there seems a flurry of interest in two players we have not yet covered, and these are really HOT TIPS.  (I know this to be true since both stories are in the Daily Mail).

So here is the background on both.  In this way, you can mug up on then, and over the weekend (or next four days if living in the UK – since we now commence a four day holiday season), and get everyone to buy you a drink on the basis that you are in the know, and can tell anyone interested all about our latest acquisitions, and can talk, drink and consume crisps simultaneously.

The two names are Marvin Martin and Seydou Doumbia – so here we go

Marvin Martin is French and is 24.  He plays for Sochaux-Montbeliard as a creative midfielder.  His club came a poor 14th out of 20 this last season which is one reason why he is ready to move on.

He has played in the youth and under 21 teams for his country and made his full international début in June 2011 becoming only the 4th player in history for France to score two goals on his first match.

Martin attended Clairefontaine academy but was not selected – but it is often said that this failure led to a renewed energy and vigour in the player, and eventually the move to Sochaux’ youth academy.   Following success in the youth cup Martin was put in the amateur team that the club run in the fourth division.  In 2008 he became a professional and made his début in August.

This past season he has started to be called Little Xavi because of his style of play and he was nominated as Young French Player of the Year.

The only issue is, do we really need another midfielder?  Maybe if he were to be seen the successor to Rosicky, it could he.

Seydou Doumbia is just 11 days older than Marvin Martin.  He is from the Ivory Coast, and plays for CSKA Moscow (currently second in the Russian League).

He played in the Ivory Coast until 2005 when he became the top scorer, before moving to Kashiwa Reysol in Japan – which is unusual I think.  After a move within Japan he left on a free transfer to Berner Sport Club Young Boys 1898 (more commonly known as Young Boys, Berne) for whom he scored 20 goals in his first year and 30 in the 2009/10 season.

On 5 January 2010 he transferred to CSKA Moscow, but stayed at Young Boys until the spring.  At the end of the year he was voted the Russian Premier League Player of the Year with 24 goals in 30 league games during the calendar year plus five Champions League goals in five games.  He then won the  Golden Boot after getting 23 goals in his first season in the Russian League.

He has played for the Ivory Coast since May 2008.

So, another forward?  We have Podolski and Van Persie.  Assuming Chamakh goes and Bendtner too, and assuming Benik Afobe isn’t quite ready and Park is not up to the job, one more would be good.

Here’s the list of players we have covered.

And for completeness, the list of the ten players I thought most likely to have more impact this season than last…

• 1. Ryo
• 2. Oxlade Chamberlaine
• 3. Jack Wilshere
• 4. Frimpong
• 5.  Joel Campbell
• 6. Abou Diaby
• 7;  Francis Coquelin
• 8. Podolski
• 9.  Jenkinson
• 10. Benik Afobe

Now, where’s that drink?